Is a communications degree from Tulane University of Louisiana worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 69% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less.

Tulane University of Louisiana Communications (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Tulane University of Louisiana communications graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $23,082, which ranks 6th lowest of 11 communications bachelor's programs in Louisiana. That works out to about $245 a month over 10 years.

Bachelor's in Communication and Media Studies
Private nonprofit university
New Orleans, LA
About 145 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Tulane University of Louisiana communications graduates earn about what communications graduates earn nationally, $33,428 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,082 in federal loans, close to the national median of $25,000. It is one of the higher-paying communications degrees in Louisiana.

First-year earnings$33,42842nd percentile of 577 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$55,70367% more than year one

Median federal debt$23,0826th lowest of 11 Louisiana programs

Debt-to-earnings69%Louisiana median 87%, national 69%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Louisiana and national columns are the medians across all communications bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Tulane University of Louisiana	Louisiana	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$33,428	$27,375	$34,574
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$55,703	$44,142	$52,771
Median federal debt at graduation	$23,082	$24,041	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	69%	87%	69%
Programs compared		11	577

Five years out, Tulane University of Louisiana graduates earn more than the national figure and about $11,561 more than the Louisiana median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Louisiana communications program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Louisiana medians.

Tulane University of LouisianaOther Louisiana programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

What graduates earn over time

Pay rises about 67% between the first and fifth year.

Tulane University of Louisiana grads, year 1$33,428

Tulane University of Louisiana grads, year 5$55,703

All Louisiana communications grads, year 5$44,142

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $245 a month, or 8.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (58 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20–39%
Paying down the balance	40–59%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
In default	20% or less

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the New Orleans area are about 7% below the national average, so a $33,428 salary here buys what about $36,101 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to communications, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Public Relations Specialists

$60,470

Median pay in Louisiana. 1,710 people work in this job in Louisiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 23,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $38,640Top 10%: $98,610

Fundraisers

$72,030

Median pay in Louisiana. 330 people work in this job in Louisiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $33,930Top 10%: $107,180

Editors

$58,860

Median pay in Louisiana. 330 people work in this job in Louisiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $36,680Top 10%: $97,740

Public Relations Managers

$94,380

Median pay in Louisiana. 320 people work in this job in Louisiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $66,150Top 10%: $183,030

About Tulane University of Louisiana

Tuition and fees	$68,678 / year
Average net price after aid	$39,949 / year
Admission rate	14%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	86%
Undergraduate students	7,767

Communications ranks 17th of 24 bachelor's programs at Tulane University of Louisiana by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($90,828), Finance ($77,806), and Marketing ($61,413).

Other communications bachelor's programs near New Orleans

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Tulane University of LouisianaNew Orleans, LA · private nonprofit		$33,428	$23,082
Dillard UniversityNew Orleans, LA · private nonprofit	5 mi	$18,155	$34,500
Nicholls StateThibodaux, LA · public	42 mi	$29,508	$25,000
Southeastern Louisiana UniversityHammond, LA · public	45 mi	$30,207	$21,660

Common questions

The median graduate earns $33,428 one year after graduating and $55,703 five years after. The median across communications bachelor's programs in Louisiana is $27,375.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Louisiana comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the communications program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Communications bachelor's programs in Louisiana, ranked11 programs by pay and debt Communications bachelor's programs in the US, ranked577 programs by pay and debt All Tulane University of Louisiana programs, ranked24 programs by pay and debt